Tteokbokki restaurant in Yeouido: Hyeonseonine Premium IFC Mall

On a day when I was craving something spicy and punchy, I went out for lunch at a good spot in Yeouido IFC Mall. And when it comes to the queen of red-colored food, isn’t it tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes)?! I visited Hyeonseonine, often called one of Seoul’s top three tteokbokki places, for the first time in ages.

Hyeonseonine Premium IFC Mall Branch: location and hours

It is on B2 of IFC Mall, 10 Gukjegeumyung-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. Hours are 11:00–21:00 on weekdays and 12:00–21:00 on weekends, with last orders at 20:40.

It is about an eight-minute walk from Yeouido Station Exit 3. Take the moving walkway, and before you reach the IFC Mall entrance, you will find it beside the GS convenience store.

Hyeonseonine reportedly began as a pojangmacha (street tent bar) in 2004 and became a Yongsan icon with just one spicy tteokbokki dish. It is now one of Seoul’s top three tteokbokki spots, with such huge popularity that there are branches all over.

There is seating outside as well, so just settle into whichever spot feels comfortable.

The kitchen is open, so you can see the cooking in progress. Seeing how clean it looked made me even more excited about this Yeouido IFC Mall spot.

The self-service bar has utensils, wet wipes, danmuji (pickled yellow radish), side plates, aprons, and more, so take what you need.

The Hyeonseoni Set ordered at the kiosk

Hyeonseonine Premium IFC Mall Branch has individual dishes including tteokbokki, sundae, gimbap, and fried items, as well as a range of sets.

Order at the kiosk by the entrance~

For reference, if you write a review on Naver, Google, or Daum, you get fried tteokbokki or a savory mayo rice ball.

The Hyeonseoni Set was ₩23,000: tteokbokki + fried items + sundae + mini gimbap. Drinks were ₩2,000.

Sides and drinks

After ordering, I picked up the essential bunsik (Korean snack food) side, danmuji, from the self-service bar, plus some salt for dipping the sundae.

I considered having a beer, but since it was lunch, I responsibly chose Coke instead haha.

Even the medium tteokbokki made my nose run

The set does not include fish cakes, but it does come with the sauce.

You can choose mild, medium, or spicy according to your preference. I got taught a lesson by the spicy level once before, so this time I chose medium haha.

Soft, chewy wheat-rice cakes.

Eating the rice cakes with a spoonful of tteokbokki sauce lets you enjoy the spice even more, haha. The medium level did not feel intensely hot, but my nose kept running a little. For reference, I am gradually becoming more of a spice wimpㅠ

The fish cakes soaked up with sauce were so delicious too.

Team rice cake? Team fish cake? Instead of wasting time deciding, eat them together. How delicious is it to have chewy rice cake and fish cake in one bite, haha.

Fried items and sundae dipped in the sauce

A variety of crisp fried items arrive, including gim-mari (seaweed rolls), vegetables, sweet potato, dumplings, and squid.

Fried food absolutely tastes best when it is thoroughly dipped in tteokbokki sauce! Hyeonseonine’s fried items are on the firm side, so I left them in a little longer before eating. Their nutty flavor goes so well with the spicy tteokbokki.

Sundae

It comes with glass-noodle sundae, liver, and lung. Everything was cleanly steamed without any off smell, making it easy to enjoy its mild flavor. For the first sundae bite, I kept it classic with just a little salt~

And of course, you cannot skip the spicy tteokbokki sauce. It seeps between the glass noodles for even more flavor and adds umami to the offal too.

Even bite-size mini gimbap

The gimbap at this Yeouido IFC Mall spot is mini gimbap that fits right into one bite, and its nutty sesame-oil aroma whets your appetite.

Danmuji, spinach, egg, ham, and imitation crab. Nothing unusual, but why is it so good?! Is it because I ate it with tteokbokki?!

As expected, tteokbokki is love. It is so famous as one of Seoul’s top three tteokbokki places that there are probably hardly any people who do not know it, but if you are looking for lunch at Yeouido IFC Mall, do give Hyeonseonine a try :)